Local News
Related Photos
Related Links
Kenyan school escapes violence
School founded by Kokomo native remains safe.
The school founded in a Kenyan slum by a retired Kokomo teacher has not been touched by violence that has swept the African nation since the Dec. 27 elections.
The Associated Press reported that more than 500 people have died in protests and ethnic violence since the elections and ensuing vote tally that foreign observers say was rigged. Another 255,000 Kenyans have been driven from their homes by the violence in the east African country, which has been known as one of the most stable in the region.
The election returned President Mwai Kibaki to power for another five-year term.
Jan Hinkle, who founded Bright Star School in November 2003, said her school is in a different slum in Nairobi, the Kenyan capitol, than the slum where the violence has taken place.
She spoke to the Rev. John Andirah, the Kenyan pastor who leads her school, last Friday, and “we’re all safe and sound ... He says things are at peace now.”
Hinkle said food costs have skyrocketed, because truckers are afraid to be on the road. Those who are working are charging much higher prices.
For example, she said, potatoes have gone up from 150 shillings to 550 shillings. In American dollars, that represents an increase from about $2.50 to $9.15.
Despite the increased costs, “our children at Bright Star do have food,” she said.
The pastor has hired a second night watchman and the electricity and water is back on.
According to the AP, economic inequality has been a major factor in the unrest, in addition to the election. Many of the poorest Kenyans supported Kibaki’s opponent, Raila Odinga.
“These unemployed young men are hungry and desperate. This gives them a great reason to loot. Not all the violence is at the government because of the election,” she said.
Hinkle said she did not hear from the pastor for three days after the violence began. She usually receives regular e-mail bulletins, but the government shut down e-mail.
One of her friends finally called his cell phone to see how the school had fared, and then he called her Friday.
Hinkle said protests are not unusual in Nairobi, and she once had to run from police shooting tear gas into a crowd during a political revolt. What has been unusual this time is the level of violence, including the burning of a church that killed at least 50 people.
Despite the recent violence, Hinkle plans to return to her school in March, taking a group of volunteers from Indiana. Another group, including volunteers from two Kokomo churches, will go in May, and she’ll take another group that includes nurses and teachers in June.
Hinkle said she’s not worried, because the violence is not aimed at tourists, just members of the tribes involved in the protests. She does not believe any of those involved want to hurt children.
“I know God is a merciful God. You have to have faith when you’re 8,000 miles away that God is going to protect them,” she said. “They might try to steal from the school, and that’s happened before, but they aren’t going to hurt children. If anyone were to hurt a child at Bright Star, I’m sure the residents of the slum would come to their defense. It’s not like the kids are out there on their own.”
- Local News
-
-
Jefferson Manner exec fired amid drug charge
The executive director of a Kokomo retirement community was fired Wednesday after being accused by police of using and selling methamphetamine.
- Shots fired near Walnut and McCann streets Police are looking for several men in a green car that fled the area of Walnut and McCann streets Thursday afternoon after several shots were fired.
-
NIPSCO plans to absorb Kokomo Gas
A northern Indiana-based gas and electricity provider announced today it intends to absorb Kokomo Gas and Fuel.
-
U.S. 31 work to begin on Tuesday
Heavy-duty equipment is in place along Business 31 in Miami County, but it won’t be used until Tuesday.
-
Kokomo City Line service starting Tuesday
Tracy Nelson said she’s sick of paying close to $40 every week to fill up the gas tank of her car.
-
More help needed for Day of Caring
Forget Uncle Sam for a moment — Cheryl Graham wants you.
-
Mayor urges action on emergency dispatch merger
Kokomo Mayor Greg Goodnight was brief Wednesday when asked to assess the county’s progress on a proposed emergency dispatch consolidation.
-
Yates gets 165 years in prison in Rethlake murder
Even though Michael Yates was not one of the shooters in the April 5, 2008, double shooting that killed Abby Rethlake and injured her friend Morgan Vetter, he was sentenced the same as if he had pulled the trigger.
-
State rethinks plan for Ind. 22
Hold the phones, the state of Indiana won’t be yanking the traffic signal at Apperson Way and Markland Avenue after all.
-
In-car cameras an integral part of policing
Anyone who has ever watched “COPS” or saw last week’s incredible video of the Ohio teen launching his Camaro into a concrete bridge column understands the power of police video technology.
- More Local News Headlines
-
Jefferson Manner exec fired amid drug charge
